


Potential

by xrivainx



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Complete, F/M, Secret Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-11
Updated: 2016-02-11
Packaged: 2018-05-19 17:11:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5975071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xrivainx/pseuds/xrivainx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A secret letter, a secret crush.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Potential

**Author's Note:**

> This started as backstory to an ask meme on tumblr that went around.  
> It was basically about sending anonymous letters from one character to another.  
> I can sometimes get carried away with really small details and I regret absolutely nothing.

It may have been one of the stupidest things she’d ever done.

When Leliana had proposed the idea, it seemed sweet. An easy way for people to show their love and appreciation for everyone else in Skyhold who fought along in their own way. She already knew some had taken advantage of it, sending multiple love letters towards others. She had even gotten a few, though she hadn’t opened them yet, having promised herself she’d do so when the burden of her thoughts became too heavy.

It was also a slight excuse to ignore them while she waited.

Her hand had hovered over the parchment for hours before she had found the proper words. They would probably take a different weight to him when he read it. Yet, they seemed to capture the situation perfectly the longer she thought about it.

 _It’s hard to describe how I feel towards you. I care deeply about  
your well being. But I also find myself wanting more. Your smile   
for something I’ve said, approval for something I’ve done. To   
share drinks and songs with you in a tavern. To leave marks   
along your collarbone, chest, down to your hips and know what   
you sound like while I do so. But I know that you would be happier   
with someone who can fulfill more of what you look for in a partner,   
_so above all, I wish for you to be happy. - **Yours**

El was fairly certain he wouldn’t recognize her penmanship (or lack of it) as most of the mission reports that crossed his desk never needed her comment. And waiting for some sort of response was the hardest part. Leliana had promised he wouldn’t know, a word wouldn’t leave her lips. There was no doubt in the elf’s mind. The response was what had her on edge.

Would he care? Would he want to know? Would it matter?

She tried her best not to think about it. She had an entire force to lead, she shouldn’t be bothering herself with those thoughts, that self-doubt. But it was all she could focus on sometimes.

For some reason, the commander had managed to burrow his way into her heart and mind. She would never regret her feelings towards him. She would only regret not telling him, not being vocal about it in person. The letter would have to suffice. Then Leliana handed her a letter in response. There was a twinkle in the bard’s eye which told her it was something to be read as soon as the elf had a moment.

Ellana had found a quiet corner of the grounds before unfolding the parchment. There was confusion on her face when she recognized her old handwriting. What? This was for Cullen, not herself. Had Leliana mixed up letters? No, she was smarter than that. The Inquisitor ran her fingers along the sides of the parchment before having the thought to turn it over.

 _Tell me who you are.  
Let me be the one to decide   
_if you do not make me happy.

So Cullen had read it. Hell. It was embarrassing to know. But he wanted to know who it was. Perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea to talk to him. Creators. This was going to be horrible. She knew it.

El wandered around the building for a while before rooting herself against the battlements, close enough to Cullen’s office that he’d notice the next time he left. Waiting wouldn’t be so bad, she knew. It would give her time to think about what she’d say. Let it sink in that he was curious about the note’s origin, whether or not he knew she was the subject. This had the potential for bad things.


End file.
